The Tor Project merges with Tails, a Linux-based portable OS focused on privacy

The Tor Project is merging operations with Tails, a portable Linux-based operating system focused on preserving user privacy and anonymity.

The merger comes against a backdrop of ongoing digital surveillance and regulatory maneuvers to break end-to-end encryption, while censorship of online services also remains firmly on the global agenda.

Tails will be incorporated “into the Tor Project’s structure,” which will allow for “easier collaboration, better sustainability, reduced overhead, and expanded training and outreach programs to counter a larger number of digital threats,” according to a blog post published today by the Tor Project’s PR & communications director, Pavel Zoneff.

Two become one

Founded in 2006, the Tor Project is a nonprofit best known for its work on Tor (“The Onion Router”), a privacy-focused network that anonymizes internet traffic by routing it through multiple disparate servers, encrypting data along the way. The Tor Project develops browsers for all the main operating systems, and some of the world’s biggest tech companies have embraced Tor to support various privacy-centric initiatives.

Tails, for its part, sports a pre-installed desktop environment and is built on a Debian-based Linux distribution. It’s lightweight, and can be booted from portable storage devices, such as a USB drive, leaving little in the way of a digital footprint.

The Tor and Tails open source projects aren’t strangers to each other. Released initially in 2009, Tails, or “The Amnesic Incognito Live System,” connects to the internet by default through Tor. Moreover, Tails has received backing from numerous third-party organizations and foundations over the years — including the Tor Project itself, which has funded developer resources for the project.

Merging the Tor Project and Tails makes a great deal of sense, given their respective focus on online privacy and anonymity, not to mention their shared history. It could also prove a boon for those most at-risk in a world that’s moving closer to 24/7 digital surveillance, with activists, journalists, and anyone vulnerable to online tracking being a potential benefactor here.

Indeed, none other than Edward Snowden has sung the praises of both platforms, and has previously said that he used Tails as part of his whistleblowing endeavors against the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) more than 10 years ago.

The merger came about following an approach that Tails made to the Tor Project at the tail-end of 2023, according to the blog post. Tails noted that it had “outgrown its existing structure.”

“Running Tails as an independent project for 15 years has been a huge effort, but not for the reasons you might expect,” Intrigeri, a team lead for Tails OS, said in a statement. “The toughest part wasn’t the tech — it was handling critical tasks like fundraising, finances and HR. After trying to manage those in different ways, I’m really relieved that Tails is now under the Tor Project’s wing.”

By pooling their respective resources, including technology and personnel, the Tor Project says it will be better equipped to address the “threat of global mass surveillance and censorship to a free Internet.” This will include broadening the scope of the Tor Project to “address a wider range of privacy needs and security scenarios,” which will include closer technological alignment, in addition to boosting education, training and outreach programs.

“By bringing these two organizations together, we’re not just making things easier for our teams, but ensuring the sustainable development and advancement of these vital tools,” Isabela Fernandes, executive director for the Tor Project, said in a statement. “Working together allows for faster, more efficient collaboration, enabling the quick integration of new features from one tool to the other.”